TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Columbia Sportswear is shifting its production base away from China for what the company’s CEO called “better opportunities in other sourcing countries,” reported CNBC.

In an interview with Mad Money, a finance television program hosted by Jim Cramer, CEO Tim Boyle of the American company said the business has been moving out of China. “We’re paying additional tariffs,” Boyle said about the rationale behind the relocation decision, adding the company is seeking to “sell more merchandise at better prices to consumers.”

While Boyle did not reveal the places he believes are the “better sourcing countries,” it appears Vietnam could be among the ideal sites. Over 60 percent of products by Columbia Sportswear were manufactured in China and Vietnam in 2018, with footwear accounting for a major portion, according to CNBC.

Nevertheless, Columbia Sportswear has yet to shift the production of its “highly technical” merchandise away from China, Boyle reckoned.

American enterprises have fled China in droves amid the intensifying trade war between the world’s two largest economies. Steven Madden and L Brands among others have set out plans to reduce their reliance on Chinese manufacturing, CNBC reported on Sept. 1.

U.S. President Donald Trump suggested on Thursday (Oct. 31) that he would ink a “phase one” trade agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping, with the location to be announced soon, reported Reuters.